


strawberry blond

by gothfox



Category: The X-Files
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Episode: s06e15 Arcadia, F/M, Fluff, Missing Scene, they're just being a pair of cuties
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-07
Updated: 2021-01-07
Packaged: 2021-03-18 03:02:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,518
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28611021
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gothfox/pseuds/gothfox
Summary: Mulder finding out that Scully isn't actually a redhead:) Fluff.
Relationships: Fox Mulder/Dana Scully
Comments: 2
Kudos: 78





	strawberry blond

**Author's Note:**

> yes, the title is from the mitski song lol. anyway, i've just been getting back into writing, i know this isn't perfect but i still hope you like it:) sorry for any grammatical mistakes, english isn't my first language.

He loved her hair. He loved the way she brushed it behind her ears when she was focusing. He loved when she brushed past him and he could smell her shampoo. He loved how messy it was in the morning after they accidentally drifted off on his couch on a movie night. He loved it long, he loved it short. And god, he loved the red.

“Mulder, can you help me with something?” she echoed from the bathroom.

They’ve been undercover as Rob and Laura Petrie for a month now and she started noticing the roots of her natural hair showing. She decided it was time to fix that.

She stopped by the store yesterday when returning from “work” and bought a box of hair dye. She never let more than a centimeter of her roots grow out, convinced it looked “unprofessional”. Not to mention their new neighbors might kill her if they see something outrageous as roots coming out of her scalp.

“What’s up?” he popped his head through the bathroom door, leaning his hands on each side of the doorframe.

She was wearing some old pyjama shorts and a t shirt stained with orange flecks – the result of all her prior hair dyeing activities. She held a box of hair dye in one hand and a hair dye brush in the other “Will you help me?” she asked and offered him a shy smile. She’s always done it herself with no problem, but why not use some help when it was at hand? It was also a great excuse to spend even more time with him.

He stepped closer and took the box of dye from her “Wha-” his eyebrows furrowed together in confusion and he looked up at her “What do you need this for?”

She brushed her hair apart on the top of her head with her hands, revealing maybe a centimeter or two of blond-ish hair.

His eyes widened in surprise “You’re blonde?” Why did he never pick up on that? Was she really that good at covering the roots as soon as they turned up or was he just too oblivious?

“It has a reddish shade to it in the sun, but yeah. It was red when I was little but it faded out eventually,” she shrugged her shoulders “I was too attached to let it go I guess.”

He didn’t say anything for a while, just studied her smiling face. She wasn’t wearing any makeup or fancy clothes, but she was the most beautiful sight in his opinion. She was rested, like, _properly_ rested for the first time in a while probably, and her sun-kissed cheeks were displaying groups of cute freckles. He wanted to kiss every single one of them.

“Mulder?” Her blue eyes were still looking up to him in question.

“Yeah, no, I’ll help you,” he broke out of his thoughts and returned the smile.

He went to change into a t-shirt he wouldn’t mind getting messy while she already mixed the dye and started applying it to the sides of her head. When he returned, he silently sat down on the edge of the bathtub, trying not to interrupt her focus.

He observed the way her hands gently separated strand by strand and applied the dye with incredible speed, but she didn’t miss a spot. Not that he expected her to.

When she was almost done, she turned to him, saying “Okay, here's where you jump in. Could you do it in the back? I can't really see what I'm doing.”

“Sure,” he nodded his head as he stood up.

“Here, put the gloves on,” she handed him the gloves but he waved them away. “The dye stains, Mulder,” she tried to explain but he didn’t care.

“Shush,” he told her “Look down,” he instructed her and she dropped her chin to her collarbone to give him better access.

The strokes he made with the brush were so gentle that it seemed he was afraid he’d break her if he made a wrong move. She winced when a hair accidentally got tangled in the brush and he pulled it away just a bit too fast.

“Shit, sorry,” he felt awful but she just chuckled in response.

“Don’t worry about it; just make sure you get every spot.”

At that he dropped the brush in the sink in front of her and put his hands on her waist to move her slightly to the side. Scully’s breath hitched at the unexpected contact and he pretended he didn’t notice as he rinsed the dye out of the brush. She hoped he didn’t pick up on her blushing cheeks. As much as she didn’t expect that, she wanted his hands on her again. She’d never dare to tell him that, though.

The past month was full of unintentional (and intentional) touches that ignited little sparks between them that later just wouldn’t go away and would linger between them for days.

He scooped up what was left of the dye into his palm and rubbed it softly into her scalp at the back of her head “Just to make sure to get every spot,” he smiled in explanation, although she didn’t ask.

She closed her eyes and felt the urge to lean back into him (but didn’t, of course). She bit her bottom lip at the feeling of his hands in her hair but released it as soon as she remembered he can probably see her in the mirror. She didn’t dare open her eyes, afraid her eyes would meet his.

His fingers move so softly, she thought. And just maybe she imagined those fingers move softly in some other places.

His voice pulled her out of her inappropriate thoughts “You ever miss the blonde?”

“Sometimes. But I think red suits me better,” she shrugged “I’ll show you some photos when we get back home and I’ll let you decide,” she smirked and he smiled widely at the thought.

“Alright, I think we’re done. What now?”

“We wait. Then we rinse. Thanks for helping me,” she turned to him and leaned back on the sink.

“Thanks for letting me.” He gave her a soft smile and meant every word. He really was grateful because he felt like she was letting him into her world a bit, outside of work. He cherished every minute of it.

In the evening, they ended up cuddled up on the couch, pretending to be watching a movie but really they were just focused on each other. Scully's head was leaned on Mulder's chest and he was brushing his hand through her freshly dyed hair, loving the feeling of her silky strands slipping through his fingers. She had her arm draped over his body, her fingers sneaking under the hem of his t shirt and softly caressing the patch of skin she found there. It was great, pretending to be a married couple, even though they didn’t have to play the part when they were hidden away from the prying eyes of their neighbors.

“Scully,” he whispered into her hair when he sensed that she was drifting off and her breathing steadied.

“Hmm?”

“Come on, let’s go to sleep.” He pulled his hand – that previously slipped down from her hair and under her shirt and stroked her back – out of the shirt and helped her on her feet.

She rubbed her eyes and just stood there, yawning with eyes still closed _. You’re adorable_ , he thought, looking at her small frame struggling to stay on her feet. He took her hand “Come on,” and tugged her towards the bedroom.

She plopped down on the bed and he picked up a pillow and a blanket to take with him to the couch, where he'd been sleeping the past couple of weeks.

“Mulder,” she said just above the whisper “Stay.”

He turned to her, his heart happy to hear her say that but also not wanting to do something she’d regret in the morning. “Are you sure?”

“Just, come here,” she sighed.

“Is it okay if I sleep in my boxers?” he nervously asked. He didn’t want to cross any boundaries.

“Yes, oh my god, just get here already!”

He climbed on the opposite side of the bed and as soon as his head hit the pillow, she was cuddled into him, her hand sneaking under his shirt and up his abs again. She let out a content sigh as she snuggled her nose into the crook of his neck.

“Night, Mulder.”

“Night,” he smiled down to her. They have slept together before. Not like this though, not with her hands up his shirt and him kissing her forehead goodnight. They wouldn’t talk about it and he was okay with that. He knew she was as well. He also knew this relationship was bound to develop into something more in time and he knew it was against the rules but right now, he didn’t care.

The next morning, he woke up with a bunch of messy hair in his face. Her red hair. God, he loved her hair so much.


End file.
